Bob brandishes his Simple Plan

Wingnut mathematician Bob Beers emerged from his laboratory Monday to unveil a simple formula designed to take money away from schools and social services and give it to MGM-Mirage.

The Republican gubernatorial candidate's so-called "Tax and Spending Control" plan, or TASC, is ostensibly a ballot initiative to curb government spending. The idea is simple: government spending can't grow any faster than the rate of inflation plus population growth.

The Consumer Price Index, which is what inflation would be pegged to for the purposes of Beers' simple formula, factors in the prices of a comprehensive and widely varied selection of innumerable goods and services. Government provides very, very few of those goods and services. But one of them that it does provide, and in a much, much larger proportion than would be found in the CPI, is health care. And the cost of health care has been rising four times faster than the rate of inflation as established by the CPI in recent years. That's just one of the reasons why Bob's Simple Plan is not only dumb, but bad and pernicious public policy. As Bob scoots along on his merry path of policy by mythology, more and more problems, flaws and idiocies of the TASC initiative will be brought to light, hopefully by people who are running for governor.

But on this, the first day that the details of Bob's wild-eyed scheme are available (here's the full text pdf), one other point, in particular, might be worth mentioning.

If state government collects money in excess of Bob's Simple Formula, then the "surplus" would be returned to taxpayers. Half of it will be distributed to folks in proportion to vehicle taxes and fees, not unlike the recent tax rebate that Bob successfully shopped through the Legislature (and thanks so much, Bob, for that $75. We'd much rather have that than books in schools). The other half, under Bob's Simple Proposal, would be returned "in proportional relief of state excise taxes paid by employers upon employee wages." In other words, unless we're missing something, it would go to your boss. (Who, by the way, gets a twofer, because your boss would also get the car tax rebate.) The bigger the employer, the bigger the amount of money returned from the state. So if you think Bob's Simple Plan might be good for you, remember, it's best for MGM-Mirage.

There was never any doubt that Bob's idea would be simple. But for some reason, we thought it'd be more populist -- especially in a state that is so very heavily reliant on that most unfair of taxes, the sales tax, for so much revenue. Because Bob has opted to reward big business more than anybody else, maybe his simple plan won't pass after all.

Comments

[Sr. Bojangles]

Mmmmm...Sweet sweet republican logic....

Let's save money by cutting everything and making the bureaucrats suddenly develop a sense of enterprise with which they'll certainly find interesting and effective ways to cut their budgets while maintaining the same level of service. Brilliant!

"The cart will go much faster if the horse pushes from behind." - Bob Beers, from his personal memoirs 'Why not put the cart before the horse? and other tidbits of brilliance'

[Ken]

Anyone who opposed Bob Beer's TASC (TAX AND SPEND CONTROLS), must be either on the government dole or just plain stupid. All of the school administrators will be screaming foul if they even suspect some sort of reduction in their pork trough. They want more schools with class sizes of no more that 15 students. That will demand more schools, more teachers=more adinistrators, and more taxes to those who live here in So. NV. God forbid that a VOUCHER system would ever be implemented. That way parents could send their children where they want to instead of to the N.E.A. (National Education Association/Union) controlled gang infested schools. I ask the Left wing Liberals, why should the tax payers of NV give a blank check to the BIG GOVERNMENT CROWD??? GO BOB BEERS. YOU ARE A BREATH OF FRESH AIR IN A VALLEY OF WIDE SPREAD CORRUPTION.

[Doug Ansell]

The school district could have another $10 Billion and they would blow it all with no appreciative inprovement - and they would come back begging for $15 the next year!

Their thirst for the hard-earned $ of Nevada citizens never fails to stun me. They would love to see seniors put in the streets "for the children" - you know what? Let the PARENTS take care of the children.

There was recently talk of curbing people that have more than 3 dogs! - SO where is the cry for some extra cash from those contraception unaware couples that irresponsibly spawn 13 times so Nevada citizens can pay $84,500 a year to babysit their herd?

After this last time to the bank, I am tired of the education mafia and I am 100% against anything that gives them another $1.